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Modern fertility awareness methods: wrist wearables capture the changes in temperature associated with the menstrual cycle
Open accessAbstract
Core and peripheral body temperatures are affected by changes in reproductive hormones during the menstrual cycle. Women worldwide use the basal body temperature (BBT) method to aid and prevent conception. However, prior research suggests that taking one’s daily temperature can prove inconvenient and subject to environmental factors. We investigate whether a more automatic, non-invasive temperature measurement system can detect changes in temperature across the menstrual cycle. We examined how wrist skin temperature (WST), measured with wearable sensors, correlates with urinary tests of ovulation and may serve as a new method of fertility tracking. One hundred and thirty-six eumenorrheic, non-pregnant women participated in an observational study. Participants wore WST biosensors during sleep and reported their daily activities. An at-home luteinizing hormone (LH) test was used to confirm ovulation. WST was recorded across 437 cycles (mean cycles/participant = 3.21, S.D. = 2.25). We tested the relationship between the fertile window and WST temperature shifts, using the BBT three-over-six rule. A sustained 3-day temperature shift was observed in 357/437 cycles (82%), with the lowest cycle temperature occurring in the fertile window 41% of the time. Most temporal shifts (307/357, 86%) occurred on ovulation day (OV) or later. The average early-luteal phase temperature was 0.33°C higher than in the fertile window. Menstrual cycle changes in WST were impervious to lifestyle factors, like having sex, alcohol, or eating prior to bed, that, in prior work, have been shown to obfuscate BBT readings. Although currently costlier than BBT, the present study suggests that WST could be a promising, convenient parameter for future multiparameter fertility awareness methods.
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“basal body temperature (BBT; defined as lowest resting body temperature) based apps that detect the BBT rise,20–22”
From Real-world menstrual cycle characteristics of more than 600,000 menstrual cycles (2019) · cites this paper as [21]
In the citing paper
“One study that investigated the possibility of detecting a decrease in skin temperature (measured at the wrist) before ovulation revealed that a pre-ovulatory temperature nadir was detected in only 41% of cycles, suggesting that prospective determination of ovulation with this method was not robust [177].”
From Temperature regulation in women: Effects of the menstrual cycle (2020) · cites this paper as [177]
In the citing paper
“- In only 41% of cycles, a T nadir (lowest T in a given cycle) was detected in a 5-day period pre-ovulation.”
From Temperature regulation in women: Effects of the menstrual cycle (2020) · cites this paper as [177]
In the citing paper
“- Showed an upward shift in wrist skin T in 82% of cycles, with higher average skin T in LP than early FP.”
From Temperature regulation in women: Effects of the menstrual cycle (2020) · cites this paper as [177]
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Self-citation
Metadata
- Authors
- Shilaih, M., Goodale, B. M., Falco, L., Kübler, F., De Clerck, V., & Leeners, B.
- Affiliations
- University Hospital Zurich (CH)
- Ava AG, Zurich, Switzerland
- Corresponding author
- Leeners, Brigitte
- Venue
- Bioscience Reports
- Publisher
- Portland Press Ltd.
- Published
- 2018-11-30
- Volume
- 38
- Issue
- 6
- ISSN
- 0144-8463 (ISSN-L)
- 1573-4935
- PMC
- PMC6265623
- OpenAlex
- W2768584306
- Cited by
- 109
- References
- 71
- Citations by year
- 2026: 15 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 3
- FWCI
- 6.67
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- Bioscience Reports (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
- Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich)
- Funders
- Kommission für Technologie und Innovation
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Reproductive Medicine › Reproductive Health and Technologies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Reproductive Health and Contraception
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
- Keywords
- fertility awareness, basal body temperature, menstrual cycle, ovulation detection, fertile window, wearable sensors, fertility monitoring, luteal phase, non-invasive temperature measurement
- MeSH terms
- Wearable Electronic Devices, Adult, Body Temperature, Female, Fertility, Humans, Luteinizing Hormone, Menstrual Cycle, Ovulation, Wrist, Young Adult
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